ProParques Costa Rica “We get things done!”
This article appeared in the Howler Magazine, October 2020 issue.
This organization was featured in The Howler 3 years ago, and so we were so impressed, we thought we’d check back in to see what they’ve been up to. After a pleasant conversation with Rocio Echeverri, the Executive Director, and Stephanie Joseph, project manager, I was left with a sense of community and enthusiasm that is, no doubt, a major reason for their success.
A True Community Effort Dedicated to Their Love For Costa Rica
ProParques Costa Rica is a publicly registered, non-profit, national parks conservation association. Members include academics, environmental activists, entrepreneurs, and tourism professionals committed to projects that assure the long-sustainability of the National Parks of Costa Rica. With them, ProParques strives to meet these 2 core objectives:
2) Enhancement and an enriched experience for all visitors to our parks with enhancements like better trails and more off them, better access, ease of use with helpful signage and customer service.
Their goal is to improve the human experience within the national parks. They address specific challenges affecting these protected areas by organizing communities committed to the protection of the parks, specifically those in their local region. This is the community involvement that drives this bus and gives ProParques the fine reputation it has earned.
Based in the Central Valley, ProParques works in 21 protected areas and 10 conservation areas throughout the country and even have a presence on Isle del Coco, an amazing and sparsely populated island many miles off the south Pacific coast of Costa Rica. I refer to this as ‘Costa Rica’s Galapagos’ and it’s staunchly protected by the National Parks Service for the same reason. So it’s no surprise the ProParques has a presence here.
Park Rangers & Volunteers
But there are many National Parks in Costa Rica, and to give them all the attention they deserve, last year, ProParques utilized the help of 5,401 volunteers in cooperation with the national parks service. These park rangers are in short supply so a meticulous, university level training program was instituted and has been in play for many years now. Rocio, the Executive Director proudly boasts its 3rd generation of 19 park rangers ready to graduate in November, 2020. ProParques developed this customized curriculum that requires 2 years of training and a thesis to graduate and receive their diploma. Most of this training is done on line, but during the program, rangers are required to meet for 2 weeks every quarter to receive in-person classes. Once completed satisfactorily, rangers are assigned to a specific park or region for detailed discussions to share their experience to apply to their growing data base of new information among themselves.
These rangers and the staff work closely with the thousands of civilian volunteers that share their same passion for their country and coveted parks to start, finish and maintain every project they endeavor. Coordinators are keen to who the volunteers are, and utilize their efforts efficiently to make sure projects are competed quickly and within budget. Their success to date has given ProParques an excellent reputation as an “organization that gets things done”. And this, states Rocio, is the reason they attract so many quality people that want to give their time and efforts to a noble cause. This, in turn, fosters a level of participation and an upbeat, positive experience for all involved.
And Then There’s Funding
ProParques is not government subsidized, though the government supports them in every other possible way, so all funding comes from private donations and grants in various forms. This requires a monumental effort on its own, but Proparques’ reputation helps grease those wheels. An example of such a ‘stakeholder’ would be Costa Rica Por Siempre, an organization that disperses working capital from a fund that is dedicated to environmental projects. This makes their partnership with ProParques a natural fit.
But the cornerstone to their funding are their hard-earned, private sector alliances. These alliances generate the financial support needed to fund every project and cover overhead, but it doesn’t stop there. Unlike many private sector ‘donations’ that are either a tax dodge, or public retaliations maneuver, Proparque emphasizes that involvement with them is a commitment…
“We don’t need just your money, we also
want your commitment and involvement”
On top of their financial support, these private sector contributors and donors, or ‘stakeholders’, are also involved with obtaining the hand work and volunteers for the projects they fund and also to provide the needed materials for that project. It’s this mandate that casts a real community vibe to the entire organization, and all the stakeholders and volunteers who are involved can feel it. This long-standing service to the community is a wonderful success story that is well documented, giving ProParques ‘brand’ recognition and a good reputation that precedes them where ever they go. And this shows up favorably in their fundraising efforts.
Proof Is In The Pudding
After getting to know Rocio and Stephanie, I was quite taken by the enthusiasm they each had for their jobs, and the love of their country. They are definitely proud of what they do. But I was also amazed at how creative they are. They have found incredible ways to get things done out of sheer determination and relentless effort. It takes much more than a tremor to knock them off course. And with the team they’ve surrounded themselves with; the park ranger program, the government partnership, the community involvement and the philanthropy and good ol’ elbow grease of the stakeholders and volunteers, they have created a resource pool to accomplish virtually anything they can think up that needs doing. And man, they can think some stuff up! I could not possibly name all the projects or stakeholders or rangers or volunteers here as much as they deserve the recognition, but I’ve recounted a project of note below that they have tackled to give a sense of what they’re all about. Visit their web site for more: http://www.proparques.org/en
Cahuita Disabled Beach Access Project:
Have you ever tried to push a wheel chair through the sand? No, I have not either, but just the idea off it is exhausting to me. This is likely why you never see wheelchairs at beach and this is the type of problem ProParques thinks about… and solves. The goal of this particular project was to provide safe and easy beach access to those with disabilities. To do that, they utilized a multi-prong game plan. First, they chose the right location, Playa Blanca, Cahuita, because it’s the only national park in Costa Rica that has a co-management agreement with the local community. This standing relationship makes the locals key volunteers in the building and daily upkeep of this project, ensuring its long-term service and success.
The goal was to build an access path from the road to the beach, which on the surface seems like a simple endeavor… but it had some obstacles to overcome, and several requirements to adhere to. The design had to conform to Costa Rica Maritime laws which prohibit any permanent structures built within 50 meters of the high tide line. This mandated that the structure had to be set up in the morning, and taken down in the evening. So it had to be light weight and portable, which is no small task for 100 meters or so of walkway. Brainstorming produced the solution of building it in many 250 x 120 cm sections that can be easily rolled up and stored which necessitated these sections to be strong, light weight and long lasting. Hard plastic was the obvious choice.
And to do that, they set about a campaign to collect as many hard-plastic caps from soft drink bottles and toothpaste tubes as they possibly could, then use that plastic to fabricate the sections. Why not clean up the environment while we’re at it? That is how ProParques do! So, they beseeched Facebook, schools around the country, standing corporate partners and all the volunteers to spread the word and help with the collection of these bottle caps, and the response was overwhelming. ProParques’ offices were inundated with bags bulging with plastic caps for months. Stephanie states, “I am still finding those caps in my car, in my house, my desk - everywhere!” So, after weeks of scheming and planning and recruiting, they had all they needed to execute this project and manufacturing commenced.
But ProParques wanted to take it a step further and ‘complete the project’. Says Rocio, “what’s the point of getting them to the edge off the water when they can’t go in? We needed to complete the project all the way.” So, they set aside an astounding $5,000 of their budget to purchase 1 specialized aquatic chair, designed for the disabled to safely ‘go for a swim’, something we all take for granted. Though this was a stunning expense, it made all the other parts of the project relevant - like the volunteers, the surrounding community involvement, the government participation, and of course, the funding. The result of all their efforts can be seen in the video provided on this page, but I must warn you, it will make you cry!
That was but one of the many, many projects ProParques have been involved in. As of this writing, Stephanie, our project manager, was on her way to Isle Del Coco to monitor progress of the compost system being installed. The only human footprint on that island are visitors and volunteers like park rangers, the costa guard, police, fire fighters and volunteers. About 15 people live on the island at any given time, who share the sole purpose of protecting this cherished piece of Costa Rica ecology and nature. Because it’s an island way off shore, these selfless people have not seen a fresh vegetable in quite some time. This prompted the greenhouse project that the black water and compost systems support. Everything is grown in the greenhouse, isolated from the surrounding eco-system as to not introduce any invasive plants that don’t normally belong there.
All of this brings into focus ProParques’ focus on making sure a project delivers what it promises… and more importantly, that ProParques delivers what THEY promised… and they always do… THEY GET THINGS DONE! And THAT is how ProParques do!
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If you want to volunteer or get involved in any way, contact Rocio Echeverri, Executive Director, at +506-2267-1851 or rocio@proparques.org.
For more information, visit Proparques’ website: www.proparque.org
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